Obama to Host Economic Conference to Help South Sudan

South Sudan is one of the world’s newest countries, and is one of its poorest. Since their creation, which has been counted as one of President Obama’s most notable foreign policy successes in his first term, the 8 million South Sudanese have struggled with border conflict to the north and rampant poverty. In response, the Obama administration is hosting an international conference in aims of developing economic solutions for South Sudan. The United States along with Britain, Norway, and the European Union will meet for a South Sudan Economic Partners Forum on April 16th in Washington.

Below is the full announcement:

The United States Government, in coordination with the Governments of the United Kingdom, Norway and the European Union, will host a South Sudan Economic Partners Forum in Washington on April 16, 2013, to discuss the economic and fiscal challenges facing South Sudan and how the Government of the Republic of South Sudan, together with partner nations and international financial institutions, can best address them.

These governments and international financial institutions, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank, are working with the Government of the Republic of South Sudan to explore concrete options to help bridge the fiscal gap exacerbated by the oil shutdown of the past year, as well as plans to diversify South Sudan’s economy to allow for sustainable long-term growth.

The South Sudan Economic Partners Forum is an opportunity for representatives of governments and international financial institutions to discuss strategies to address South Sudan’s economic challenges with South Sudanese Government officials and offer support for sound government policy-making.